Lycus Desselius
Kraven Desselius, an Imperial, was the gladiator and warrior who became Hircine's Champion. Born in the Third Era, he was raised as a poor farmer living near Weye. After gambling with corrupt Imperial Officers and undercover slavers, Kraven was in danger of being arrested and kidnapped. By winning fairly in one of his gambling matches, he was betrayed and poisoned and smuggled off to Morrowind. Arriving in Tel Aruhn as a slave in Bratheru Andrano's stronghold, he was recognized as a capable gladiator and taken to the Vivec City arena to settle his master's debts in combat. Three years later, Kraven ventured back to Cyrodiil where he once again fought in the games, starting with the Kvatch arena. Kraven was taken to the Bloodworks to continue his gladiator training, unbeknown to most that he had already been a combatant in Vvardenfell. Biography The Imperial male who would become The Beast of Kvatch was born as merely Kraven the farmer on Cyrodiil, to an abusive dock worker named Kerstus. Kraven was often bullied by his father. Kerstus blamed young man for the life of poverty. Kerstus also took to blaming his son for his own miserable existence and considered Kraven to be an animal, much so that he took to calling him "Beast" on the daily basis. At the age of twenty, Kraven began to hunt for a living to provide for himself and his mother when Kerstus began squandering the septims on brothel whores and alcoholic drinks. Kraven learned to fend for himself, disregarding the mockery and physical abuse thrown at him by his father. One day after fishing and killing a deer and returning it to his home for his mother, a drunk Kerstus insultedt him until Kraven rose up to his father and challenged him to a fight. Furious, Kerstus began to beat upon his son until his nose broke and lips bled, although Kraven endured the pain without making so much as a sound of retaliation. That night, Kraven, filled with anger, started to travel to the Imperial CIty to begin gambling to save for him and his mother. Four months passed, and Kraven had won a good amount of coin until he played his last match. In the last card game, Kraven was poisoned, beaten and smuggled into a ship in the Waterfront by Dres members and corrupt Legion officers. Without his mother or father discovering, Kraven was shipped to Morrowind and sold into slavery. The Slave. To be written. The Wild Hunt in The Hunting Grounds. "If you haven't paid attention to the horns, we're being hunted; the bears. The nords . . . they're out for our blood. We're all brought here for same purpose. This forest is part of Oblivion. We're in the Hunting Grounds and we're the game. Leave your pride at the door, for it has no place here. In this place were going to face all manners of experienced killers. What you might have faced back in Nirn is child's play and if you want to stay alive, you must do what must be done at all costs. It has been said that only one person escaped this place . . . and the only known way out is by the end of the spear. Only one of us might make it out alive." To be written. Hound of Hircine To be written. Gladiator in Cyrodiil To be written. Physical Appearance. Kraven Desselius was known for his tall stature, caramel skin color and his long flowing shoulder-length black hair and hazel eyes. When in his early twenties, he had minor facial stubble until he alllowed his hair and beard to grow. He was known for his facial stubble and his savage, barbarian-like appearance which was considered unorthodox among Imperial citizens. He was constantly scorned and compared to an animal, though he did not want to change his physical looks to please others, for he felt comfortable with himself that he enjoyed his less-than-stellar looks. When rising to prominance in slavery, Kraven was specially groomed by his mistress who disliked his "base" looks, and had ordered every hair on his body removed and his facial hair waxed. This left Kraven with a much more youthful visage than he initially looked until the years passed and she later disregarded the need to groom him. When he contracted Lycanthropy, Kraven's life was prolonged due to a pact made with Hircine, and also spending centuries in the Hunting Grounds. His appearance grew old, but he yet held his semblance from decades prior. His eyes changed to a radiant yellow. Standing tall and imposing, he began to put on muscle through the years fighting as a gladiator and eating nutritional food such as porridge and hound meat and Kwama eggs. He put on pounds of muscle and began a lean, athletic figue which bolsted his ego and captured the attention of women and whores in both the slave cast and the brothels. After his escape and his life in the wilds of Skyrim, Kraven reclaimed his wild look, having his face grow stubble and his hair grow longer. After being trapped in the Hunting Grounds for quite some time, and being transformed by the very essence of the realm, Lycus' appearance was monstrous. He had a feral look about his face, and his eyes beheld insanity and reflected his innermost desires. Personality & Traits "What I know about Kraven Desselius? He's a scarred man in torment. A bitter, cynical man who mocks the gods and laughs at men. He's loved and lost and never loved again. It is hate that drives him. Though he's committed many atrocious sins, he never sought forgiveness from the Nine. But what you've heard about his legendary exploits are true. He has done many deeds, both good and ill, and if you ever want to cross this man, make sure you're by his side and not in his path." As a young boy, Lycus was mindful and wise and intelligent He was friendly and easily got along with others despite his low-class life as a farmer. He also had a special spot in his heart for his mother, whom he took care of by buying her jewels, hunting for food and fishing. He was both helpful and generously kind; doing everything in his power so that he could to help her. Every coin he came across or earned, he gave to her in hopes of finding a better life. Though lovable, he had a darker side. He carried grudges and was vengeful of those who did him wrong. Lycus also hated being treated unfairly or being wrongly accused. He was fiercely loyal, doing his best to keep those he cared about from harm. His only price for such thing was loyalty in their part. After being sold into slavery, Lycus' separation from his mother was the hardest thing he'd ever done, and it still hurt him for years. Because of his fear of losing even more friends, he kept to himself. During his growing years he grew especially close to a woman and a Redguard Blademaster, considering them a beloved friend and a role model. Due to his sudden ascension from being a servant boy to being known as the "Slayer of Beasts. Champion of Warriors,” and the rising star of the gladiator stock, his pride and arrogance sunk in. He grew cocky, self-appreciating, and he began to despise being tended to, lectured or even reprimanded. He was a naturally honest man and hated lying and deception, and detested politics and corrupt authority officials, rightly considering most of the men and women in the Empire’s upper circle to be greedy and power-hungry. His father’s continual abuse against him hurt Kraven, who at times wasn't sure he even deserved to be loved, something his heart craved. Therefore, he was easily swayed by the promise of praise and glory in the arena and the promising loins of a Telvanni mistress. His yearning to be loved, as well as cherished and appreciated, came out in his devotion to combat and secret relationship with a manipulative woman, one of the few people he ever thought cared for him. As his fame spread, he became more and more arrogant, and he knew that he was one of the best gladiators in Vvardenfell, believing that he could easily best any warrior or mage blindfolded with a spear tied to his back. Despite having an arrogant personality, Kraven secretly suffered from an overwhelming sense of anxiety and uncertainy. He struggles daily against a "wolf" in his heart. The wolf stands as everything that negatively defines his emotions; fear and self-doubts. His childhood trauma of being attacked and watching his sheep get killed by a wolf was so great that in his mind, he would compare his greatest fear to his own personal issues. His fears becomes a catalyst for his journey and growth into someone different and the very thing he feared the most and new identity as Lycus Desselius. As a warrior and a combatant, Lycus is a loyal friend to those true to him, with a savage and barbaric code of conduct that often marks him as beyond honorable than the most sophisticated of people he comes across in his travels. He had a strict code of honor, and refrained from stealing or cowardly acts of killing. Even as a leader and brother among the small group of slaves consisting of rapists, murderers and thieves, he stood out as a authorative figure who never engaged in raping or thieving. His ferocity and his dedication to killing make him a terrifying presence on the battlefield. Yet underneath the fearsome killer, Kraven is still a boy who had his childhood destroyed by a malicious father. After becoming what happened in the Hunting Grounds and after becoming a Lycanthrope, his personality changed for the worst. He was became a rattled man, shaken by the death of those closest to him and the events that happened prior. Upon becoming a werewolf, Lycus initially remained uncertain of his condition, but regained his self-confidence and embraced his gift by returning to his roots as a hunter. After he lost two women whom he shared his heart with, Lycus gained a firm belief that love was a weakness and was meaningless in the violent life that was his. Aside from his warrior life, Lycus has a hobby of hunting big-game creatures such as lions or Sabretooth cats, and even mammoths. Before and after his slave life, he would spend time hunting creatures, taking their heads as trophies as well as their meat for sustenance. When he wasn't satisfied with hunting beasts, Lycus began working with the authorities to hunt down prisoners and escaped convicts into the wilderness, in which he would hunt them down. He even owned a private trophy room to display the skulls of animals and dangerous people he killed. Combat Skills & Abilities "The fiercest beast you will ever come across. This man is quite possibly the finest warrior I've seen. As if Ebonheart himself had a son and by humor named him Kraven. You are welcome to spar with him. Just be sure to cooperate by not passing out . . . or dying." Kraven Desselius was trained in sword combat by the Redguard blademaster Nachael. He became a deadly duelist and fighter, and wielded a spear, a sword, and a curved blade(the scimitar), a weapon presented by the Redguard in recognition of his skill and dedication. Kraven developed an altered style with the unique scimitar, the subleties of which were recognized by only the most seasoned weapon holders and fighters in Tamriel. After Kraven left behind Morrowind, he favored a furious, all-offensive manner of combat, and capitalized on his tremendous physical strength to overwhelm and defeat his adversaries. Kraven taught himself to adapt to a more complex style that incorporated feints and defensive maneuvers, as well as techniques and offenses he learned from the Blademaster Nachael while yet a new slave. When given his Lycanthropy, Lycus is granted a number of abilities including preternatural strength, stamina, speed, efficiency and agility. Due to training his body is also more durable and can endure more forms of injury than the body of a normal person. Due to a pact with Hircine and his service as a Beast, his Lycanthropy has dramatically altered his aging to the point that he hasn't aged at all over several decades. Despite the possibility of being over 70 years of age, he maintained the physical appearance of a 30-year-old man. Lycanthropy enhances Lycus' sight, hearing, and smell to supernatural proportions, adding to his already impressive tracking and hunting talents. He can see farther, and with greater detail, than a normal mortal. His hearing is likewise improved, enabling him hear from great distances. Lycus can use his sense of smell to track prey by scent, much as some creatures do, even if that smelll has been eroded and changed by natural factors. Even before his Lycanthropy, Lycus was an Olympic-level athlete, a gifted leader, hunter, and spear-thrower and combatant and sword master. While living the life of a hunter and a farmer, Kraven picked up simple skills such as archery and spear-throwing and simple labor. Most of Kraven's martial and combat skills came at the foot of Nachael, his Redguard trainer in Lord Bratheru Andrano's stronghold in Azura's Coast in Morrowind. After months of learning working slave labor in the mines and tirelessly in the plantations, Kraven was given an opportunity to become a gladiator. Already proficient in the use of the spear, Kraven learned the basic of warrior combat to the most complex techniques; block, parry, thrust, slash, counterattack. He did not possess any magical abilities save for his inherited Imperial powers of pursuasion, which he used to lead his fellow men. When Kraven embraced his Lycanthropy and rechristened himself as Lycus Desselius, he maintained his fighting ways, but made use of in a more brutal fashion, becoming a frightening opponent. This aggression became his strength and a flaw, as he would become so controlled by it that it would give way to Lycanthropic-induced rage. Though blessed with youth, strength, athleticism, and mastery of sword combat and gifted with raw abilities that overpowered most, Lycus still lacked the experience, calm, and focus that could benefit him even more in battle. During his stay in Morrowind, he learned new archery skills with his bow and arrow, that came in use when stealing a horse that was doomed to be served as food from the noble's table. While being ambushed by orsimer bounty hunters, Kraven put his skills to the test while mounted atop his chestnut steed. He was also an expert in using his spear, which served to be thrown and also used as a defensive and offensive weapon where he could keep his foes at bay. While a burden to move around, Kraven still carried it by holding it next to his hips or above his shoulder. While lacking any skills from a mage or assassin, Kraven used most of his hand to hand abilities and his sword training by using any manner of weapon he could scavange from either killed enemies, dead individuals or abandoned locations.